Resurrection
by Banares
Summary: Based on Aviendha's vision: The Aiel, the Aes Sedai, the Asha'man. Remnants of their former people, hunted by all after Tarmon Gai'don. This is the story of how they arose from the ashes and defeated the Seanchan. This is the story of their Resurrection
1. Prologue

**A/N:** ToM spoilers. Based on Aviendha's vision of the future.

**Prologue**

_I am dead. Don't notice me. I am dead._ He thought, lying on the ground, immobile as a corpse. That was what he was pretending to be. A corpse. Like the ones strewn around him, mangled and blood-stained in the battle-churned dirt. If they found out he was alive, they really would turn him into a corpse. The sun was at its apex, sending rays like daggers to scald his abused body. Light that dazzled his mind and made thinking difficult.

"Shall I burn them?" asked the slurred voice of the _sul'dam_. He could not see her. His face was buried into the back of what had once been his friend Nickelson. Even as one fragment of his mind focused on the voices and on surviving this ordeal, another part mourned loudly in the recesses of his mind for what had been lost this day. "One of the men was a channeler. I couldn't see any flows. We should get rid of the shadow-tainted vermin!"

_Saidin is clean! _Aaron thought irately, through the haze of heat and light. _The Dragon Reborn and the Great Healer of Malkier cleansed it!_

"Whoever it was that channeled is dead," said a weary, gravelly voice. From his manner, Aaron understood that he was in command of the Seanchan troops that had destroyed his companions. Bloodlust crept into his thoughts, like tendrils of the Shadow itself.

_Nickelson, Orvil, Pate, Eginor, Verindrail…So many! Light, all of them! Gone! Dead! They should die too! Those bloody Seanchan! Why should they continue living?_

"Come, let us ride. If we hurry, we can make it to Cairhien before nightfall," the gravelly voice of the commander continued. Aaron painfully stuffed his grief away to listen. "No need to burn the bodies. We don't want every bandit in the vicinity to know we're here. And we may start a forest fire."

"But-"

"That's an order," the commander said curtly, "The Queen has commanded our battalion and several others to reach Cairhien with all haste. And since your Kali is too weak to weave a gateway, we must use horses. I will not tolerate any further delays!"

Aaron heard the sound of hooves and knew that the commander had ridden away with the others. He didn't need to see her face to tell that the _sul'dam _was affronted. An insult to the strength of her _damane _was an insult to her. But she too left with her captive channeler, following the group, leaving Aaron injured and bleeding in the dirt that was littered with carnage. Leaving Aaron _alive_.

He was too numbed from the events of the last hour to feel much relief. He had been the lone channeler of his group of about sixty men. They had been on their way to the Traveling ground from where they would journey to a secret meeting of some of the surviving _Asha'man_. The Black Tower still lived. It had not been attacked as heavily as the White Tower had, and factions of the broken Tower still continued to fight. But he was in no condition to go anywhere now. And his absence would be noted. The meeting would be moved in case any information he possessed had been compromised. No point in any of it now. In all likelihood, he would die anyway. He had already lost a great deal of blood from the gashes on his arms and face. One of his legs was broken and pains in his chest told him that at least one of his ribs was in a similar state. _I should have killed them_. He thought again. But it did no good. The battalion had caught them completely off guard. Running into a Seanchan patrol on this of all nights, when they had so short a distance to travel! He cursed his luck. He had tried to channel, but the _sul'dam_ and _damane _had noticed right away and had destroyed his men within the hour with lightening and earthquakes. _Nickelson, Orvil, Pate, Egin... _

There. Movement. Were they back? His mind was too hazy to make sense of the figure that ambled among the dead, bending down beside each man. _Nickelson. _He began again, listing the names of his departed comrades._ Orvil, Pate…_

With a start, he realized that he was on his back, a face peering at him appraisingly, shielding him from the blazing light of the sun, which looked absurdly like a halo surrounding her. He closed his eyes to the sight. He felt gentle but sure fingers on his wrist, testing for vital signs. He heard a gasp, and suddenly his whole body jerked like he had just been doused in something cold. His teeth chattered and his eyes opened long enough to make out a young woman with long, dark tresses, her face obscured and holding promise of something unknown.

"Shhh, you're safe" whispered the girl, the Aes Sedai, after he tried to open his mouth. "I am Stephania Malone. You will be tired after a healing like that. Go to sleep." Her voice was kind and soothing as bonds of air took him lightly around his waist and arms and legs and a gateway for Skimming opened up in front of them. Aaron said goodbye to his friends before his eyes closed and he fell asleep in the bonds.

XXXXX

"The Aiel," began Queen Solvinia, but she was cut off by the man who reclined across from her.

"Another effort must be made to exterminate them," said the man, either unaware or uncaring that he had just interrupted the Queen of Andor and Cierhien, and the de facto leader of a third of the lands this side of the Spine of the World, descended from the Dragon himself. He was the leader of the Deathwatch Guards, answering only to the Empress herself or one of her Seekers for Truth. Solvinia let it go. "My scouts tell me they have begun to breed again and are upsetting trade to Shara."

"I see," answered Solvinia coolly, quashing the urge to raise her hand and touch her golden hair or her dress. The man gave her chills. The way he talked of people as he would animals and how his eyes and his tone never changed even as he contemplated killing on such a vast scale made her want to run from him. "Is that why you took the liberty of commandeering my soldiers? I hear that you sent out a summons to many of my troops in the vicinity. I was not consulted."

"I did not think it necessary," he stated in that same cool tone.

"I merely meant that you and I should be on the same page. It will benefit all of us if we work together."

"I will do what I feel is best for the _benefit_ of the Empress, may she live forever."

Solvinia said nothing, but inside she seethed. _The Dark One take his bloody Empress!_

XXXXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Tell me if you think I should continue. I own nothing.


	2. Chapter 1: Plottings

**Chapter 1: Plottings**

The Wheel of Time turns, and Ages come and pass, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is long forgotten when the Age that gave it birth comes again. In one Age, called the fourth age by some, an Age yet to come, an age long past, a wind rose in the harsh, rugged plains of the Aiel Waste. The wind was not the beginning. There are neither beginnings nor endings to the turning of the Wheel of Time. But it was _a_ beginning.

The wind rose like a monster of myth from the Waste, thousands of tons of dust giving it substance. With a primeval roar like a warrior charging, it raced over the parched land, over the multitudes of primitive people that aimlessly roamed the Waste, their past creeds and sense of duty and honor forgotten. Where once lived proud warrior societies and close-knit clans there survived only scattered and divided traces. They lived like ones not used to the cruel Waste, choosing to plunder travellers rather than live off the land. They were no longer exterminated actively, only by independent bounty hunters. An Aiel head was worth six gold crowns for the trouble they caused. It had been decades since the last time they had tried to congregate in a group. But they had learned. The People of the Dragon lived only in memory, just as the Dragon now lived only in memory. The Aiel, for whom the Waste was named. Forgotten, forgotten.

The wind stormed over the Spine of the World, travelling west and flinging itself like a challenge into the lands that bordered the Aryth Ocean. Here was, indeed, a different world, one that the Aiel remnants, as scholars called them, could only dream of. Wet lands, green lands, prosperous lands. Great cities and vast farms spread out in rectangular patches on the Earth. Here was a land truly sheltered in the Hand of the Creator. A land without war, where the Law of the Empress, may she never cease to breathe, spread to every corner of every land.

But there was also a shadow. Like the shadow of disease in the roots of an otherwise healthy, flowering tree.

Finally, after having travelled thousands of leagues over remarkable terrain, the wind finally abated over an unremarkable village in the Plains of Maredo, halfway between the city of Far Madding and the Sea of Storms. A flyspeck village, not important enough to have its own Seanchan officers to watch over it, and certainly not large enough to have its own _damane _and _sul'dam_. And perhaps that was the reason why it was home to a secret someone. Two secret someones, in fact. Stephania and Aaron Gill had lived in the village of Dormer's Hill for a whole year now, but they were still looked upon as strangers. Nobody ever moved _to _Dormer's Hill, except maybe Sasha Eldrick, the little girl who had been found near dead in the forest and adopted by the blacksmith's family. People moved _away _to get married or find a better life, but no one ever _chose _to live there. But, to the amazement of the hundred or so people who lived in the small community, Master and Mistress Gill moved into the small, three-room cottage that was being vacated by the previous carpenter, who was moving up to Far Madding to join the guild there. Master Gill himself was a carpenter and was good at fixing things, and so the villagers of Dormer's Hill were glad they wouldn't have to trek the twenty-three miles to a neighboring village if the wheels of their wagons broke or they needed a fence fixed. Stephania and Aaron lived by the rules, though they were treated with the suspicion village folk always reserved for strangers. They listened to the Mayor and his Assembly and the Mother and her Women's Council, the only tangible government in these parts. They treated everyone kindly, if carefully and never made trouble. Soon the villagers dropped their suspicions and went back to their lives, if still labeling the couple as strangers.

If the people of Dormer's Hill had been more worldly and had had more time for leisure activities, they would have realized that the Gills' perfect behavior was itself suspicious. But they were simple village folk. Exciting, fateful things always happened elsewhere.

"We can no longer remain here like this" whispered Aaron again, glancing at the girl who everyone in the village believed to be his wife.

"The Wheel weaves as the Wheel wills," answered Stephania mildly. It was too early in the day to get into an argument with the man. They had had this one numerous times over the months they had been in Dormer Hill. Ever since the day it had been judged that Aaron had recovered completely from his Healing. Stephania had come to the village and used what money she had to buy the cottage from the previous carpenter. It was a great distance from the place where she had first found Aaron and she had deemed it the perfect place for him to regain his strength.

Aaron glared at her, not the least bit grateful, it seemed. "The Dark One take the Wheel _and_ your incessant moralizing! We cannot stay here forever, sitting on our hands. We must act!" You would think she was just dragging him down.

"Before we can act, we must have a coherent plan! Riding around the countryside killing Seanchan patrols is _not _a plan, no matter how satisfying you may find it to be. It's a good way to get ourselves killed without actually accomplishing anything," she told him. He was a strange man. He talked to her openly, and his tone was often dry and sardonic and sometimes biting, but he was not talkative or outwardly emotional with the other villagers. He only became visibly affected when it came to the Seanchan and to the duty he had apparently charged himself with: to take vengeance for his fallen comrades. _But then_, she thought, _I'm a little like that myself_.

"Then what do you propose huh? What coherent _plan_ have you come up with?"

Stephania fought the urge to hit him and answered, "I don't have a plan yet, but I do know that there's something in the village that will divert my efforts for a while."

Aaron straightened in the simple wooden chair, looking at Stephania suspiciously. "What in the world are you talking about? Don't tell me you've an eye for some man in the village. I don't think these people would take it well if you tried to cheat on me."

Stephania snorted, continuing to grind the hookwood leaves. It seemed the Mother of Dormer's Hill was very inexperienced when it came to medicinal herbs. Selling them to the locals was proving to be every bit as lucrative as Aaron's carpentry business. "Of course not. I'm not about to bring _more _attention on ourselves."

"Then what in bloody ashes are you talking about?"

"There's a girl," Stephania said, meeting his dark eyes with her light ones, "She has the Spark in her."

Aaron looked stunned. "What? Who is it? Why didn't you tell me before?"

"It's Sasha Eldrick. I have no idea how old she is, though. You remember that story of how she was found near dead in the forest just a year before we arrived? It turns out she has no idea how old she really is. She says she doesn't remember much of anything before she came here, or at least refuses to speak of it. And as for why I didn't tell you, I just learned it last night at the Fox's Luck." The Fox's Luck was the village's only inn. It was small, in proportion to the size of the village. It rarely held guests, used more for a place for the community to gather in the evenings. It had been the first time Stephania had seen little Sasha there. Her first few months Stephania rarely ventured out, taking care of Aaron the invalid in the beginning and later too cautious to leave the cottage. But as the months wore on, she decided that she and Aaron needed to show themselves a little more in order to appear less suspicious. She had caught few glimpses of Sasha and in any case had not been interested in meeting her. But, finally, that night in the Fox's Luck, when she had been drunk for the first time in a long time, she had been careless enough to embrace the source in a public place, and learned that Sasha had the Spark. Stephania shivered, still remembering how she had risked herself and Aaron by giving in to the allure of the One Power after going without it for so long. But at least some good came out of it. Sasha had the Spark. She would channel, even more powerfully than even Stephania, who was quite powerful herself. And it was possible she would die from her first brush with the power.

"Well," said Aaron, considering, "She can't be more than fourteen, can she? I mean, if she was, the Seanchan would have bagged her already."

Stephania frowned at his way of referring to slavery and the breaking of a woman's will, "I don't know. She might be below the Testing Age, but it may be possible that she's older. I mean, she _was_ found in the forest. What if she somehow knew she would pass the test and had escaped? Maybe she was pursued and that's how she ended up unconscious and won't tell anyone anything about herself."

"Or maybe she's the child of a renegade channeler? They could have been attacked and she might have fled. Or even the child of a bandit," Aaron added.

"All possible theories," Stephania agreed. "But that doesn't change the fact that I have to teach her."

Aaron nodded, "Yeah, you're right. She could join us. She's being looked after the Lodwigs right now, but, knowing them, I doubt she'll be missed. They only took her on after they were ordered to by the Assembly and the Women's Council both."

"Yes, but even more important, she might lose her life if I let her go off on her own anymore. I have to guide her into reaching _saidar, _otherwise she'll be in danger of reaching for it herself the first time."

Aaron stood up and strode up and down the small room, too agitated by the sudden news to sit still anymore. "Yes, but how in the world are you going to get her on her own to teach her? How will she even react to you? Will she go and tell everyone? And besides, how will you be able to mask her channeling? There are a lot of potential pitfalls in your plan."

"I thought about it last night," answered Stephania, going over to stand in front of the small window. Outside, the sun was only a quarter of the way to its zenith. It cast a cheerful, new light on the world. But, looking up, Stephania could see the undersides of leaves that the light did not reach. The carpenter's house they were staying in was at the edge of the village, separated from the other houses by about half a mile. Trees and quaint pastureland surrounded them. A dirt path wound its way to the dirt road that led straight through the village. That road was Dormer Hill's lifeline. Merchants and news always came through that road. It was the road through which she and Aaron had come that night, nearly a year ago, after she had Travelled hundreds of leagues southeast from where she had found him. And it was the road through which they would one day leave, she was sure of it. "I have to take her away someplace, where I can explain everything to her without her able to go to anyone in the village and where she and I can channel freely, without fear of being taken by a passing Seanchan patrol with a _damane _that could sense us. And I need it to be a place she could stay in comfortably and safely for a few days until she learns a few important weaves."

Aaron thought for a few seconds, "I haven't got a clue of a place like that. Except maybe the Waste, but everyone knows you'd be set upon by wild Aiel within seconds."

"Tremalking," Stephania whispered.

Aaron gaped. "Are you completely _mad?_ _Tremalking?_ That cursed place is worse than the Waste!"

"It was never cursed," explained Stephania, trying to put every ounce of the conviction she felt into those words. She had to convince Aaron, or he'd just try and interfere later on. The teaching of the ways of _saidar_ was to be between Sasha and herself. "People think that the island was completely depopulated by some kind of spirit or monster. And the stories that grew up around the deaths of the people there prevent anyone from living or even visiting the place today. But that's not what happened. On the island there was a huge statue of a woman that was mostly covered up. Only a hand holding a crystal showed through the ground. One day it shattered, and the inhabitants of the island, whose religion centered around the hand, decided to commit suicide because they thought it hailed the ending of the world they were living in."

Aaron looked at her skeptically. He had no idea how she knew some of the things about the past that she did, but didn't pester her into telling him. He respected her secrets, and she was grateful for that. She wasn't sure she wanted to reveal her Ability to him yet.

"Alright. If you think that's the safest place to take her, then you do it," he said, reluctantly. "Just come back quickly."

Stephania smiled. They had decided after coming to Dormer Village that they would travel together. A couple travelling together aroused less suspicion than one person alone. Two channelers afforded more safety against Seanchan patrols, which generally had no more than one _damane _and _sul'dam_ pair. They had also decided that they would take no major action unless they both agreed.

"So when are you going to take little Miss Eldrick on her journey?" asked Aaron, settling back down in his chair and running his hands through his jet black hair.

"I have yet to decide that. It will be whenever she will go to the forest. Apparently she is good with a bow and the Lodwigs send her to hunt often. I'll take her whenever she is sent next time. But meanwhile, I have to make preparations…"

XXXXX

Sasha stared out of the window that night, from the room she shared with the youngest of the Lodwigs' children. She gripped the knife she had filched the first week she had been in this village. Her form, tall for a woman her age, extended a little past her pallet, but she was so used to sleeping uncovered that she ignored it. She was a singularly remarkable girl. Her blonde hair and her light green eyes were a rarity in this land. Thankfully, people this far from the Spine of the World knew nothing of what her features meant. It rendered them all the more helpless to her. Her grip on the hilt of the knife did not slacken, just as her determination to see her goal through did not waver. Her goal. The sole purpose of her life. It gave her strength.

_For the Aiel_. She thought. _I must not fail._

And another plotted long into the night in the flyspeck village of Dormer's Hill, where exciting, fateful things never happened.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Chapter 2 wil be up within 2 days


	3. Chapter 2: Preparations for Hunting

**Chapter 2: Preparations for Hunting**

Far across the Aiel Waste, over the craggy, rugged mountains and flat, sandy plains, flew a _raken _and its rider. _Raken_ were the lightest of the fliers, efficient for fast communication when Travelling was not an option. With a light rider on its back, the _raken_ could fly with a message from Cairhien to the farthest Seanchan outpost in the Waste in a matter of four days. Below the ribbed wings of the creature flew leagues of uninhabited land. At least, that was what the beast and his rider thought. The Aiel could imagine their reaction if they knew what was hidden underneath the mountains.

More than a hundred years previously, a lone woman had travelled into the Waste, with wagons full of food and seed to plant crops. The wild Aiel who stalked her were excited to kill her and take her treasures come nightfall, when she would fall asleep and couldn't use the lights that blossomed in her hands to hurt them. And, sure enough, the band of savages crept upon her under a darkening sky, blades in their hands and greed in their hearts. But they found the woman ready with bands of air to bind them all, the wagons of food just a bait to trap them. To the greater surprise of the wild Aiel, she did not kill them.

No, instead, she talked to them.

She told them stories. Stories of what had been, of what _they _had been.

Through the night, she had talked until her voice became hoarse and the light of the sun dawned on a new day. And then she released them. But they did not leave, they were in too much awe of the woman, of the Aes Sedai, as she had said she was. Though their stomachs were empty, they were filled by her words, of the grand history of their people, the history she had revealed to them. Of honor and duty and a curious thing called ji'e'toh. Finally, the woman told them of what _could_ be. Of the clans that they would build and the civilization that could rise again. And the Aiel were mesmerized once more, their chests swelling with hope. Finally, the woman asked them a question.

She asked them if they would accept her help.

And Coline Coramel Aes Sedai had stayed there ever since that day.

XXX

"I won't." said Sasha resolutely. She would die for her family, for the people of the Waste, but this was utterly ridiculous. "Send Ronan. Light, Valori would be a better choice! Both are older and wiser."

Coline and Rorie shared a look. The dark, ancient Coline was much smaller than Sasha's mother, so she had to crane her wrinkly neck a little in order to accomplish it.

"Coline Sedai said it has to be you, so that is the way it will be," admonished Rorie, placing her hands on her ample hips. She was doing that a lot lately, admonishing and speaking sharply with anyone she thought was slighting Coline. It was strange to Sasha how closely her mother stuck with Coline these days, acting like the old woman's bodyguard, always with a packet of one herb or another on hand. Was Coline sick? Sasha knew the Aes Sedai was older than she could imagine, but Coline's death was something equally unimaginable. She had been too active, too strong for much too long.

They were in Coline's room, more massive than the room Sasha and her family shared. In fact, it was larger than any in the complex. But no one of their group begrudged Coline the larger space. She was Eldest, the bringer of Wisdom, born in the last years of the Dragon's life. A squat, dark haired woman whose dark bun was streaked in white and silver, her skin fell in sags under her heavily-lidded eyes. They held the indifference of age, but Sasha could see readiness in the way Coline carried herself, and in the actions that she had performed on behalf of the Aiel. It was due to her that they could live here in the first place. She had saved them, there was no denying it. But what she was asking Sasha to do now was insane!

"It is all right Rorie. If the child is stubborn, then she cannot go. I will not entrust such an important mission to someone who cannot take it seriously." Coline's voice was slow, but loud, with a tone that shouted her indifference over insulting anyone.

Sasha gritted her teeth in anger and glared at the old woman. Eldest or not, no one had the right to fling such lies at her!

"I only say what I say because I don't want to endanger the mission," she explained. "My brothers are both older. They should be the ones to go."

Coline sighed and sat down on the array of rugs and cushions on the ground. Grunting, she arranged her skirts with a bony, wrinkled hand and patted the space next to her. Rorie followed her lead and seated herself on the rugs next to Coline, while Sasha parked herself opposite them. Coline took a breath and began speaking in her slow, croaky voice.

"There was once a time when the Aiel and those with the Ability were not hunted the way they are today. Instead, female channelers of the White Tower, the Aes Sedai_,_ were revered creatures whose powers allowed them to cure disease, prevent war, and help highborn and commoners alike by using the One power. Then, in the time of the Dragon Reborn, before the Last Battle with the Shadow, the male channelers entered the world and called themselves the Black Tower, the Asha'man. They were created by the Dragon Reborn himself to be weapons against the Shadow. The Aiel, then a nation of people stronger than any this side of the Spine, were themselves called the People of the Dragon, a spear forged in the Waste to hurl against the Dark One and his allies. Together, we three made it possible for the Dragon Reborn to destroy the Shadow, and it seemed for a time that things would go back to the way they were before. But, alas, it was not to be. In our weakened states, the Seanchan invaders conquered us. They enslaved the female channelers and murdered the male ones. They drove the Aiel back over the Spine and hunted them to the brink of extinction."

"The female channelers lost their freedom and instead became slaves for the Seanchan war machine. I do not know if there are any that are yet free, besides myself. It has been more than a hundred years since I crossed over the Dragonwall into the Waste. The Aiel, as you know, are in their current state because they chose to challenge the Seanchan."

Sasha was quiet for a time, digesting what she had heard. "Yes," she agreed softly. "Then you came, before even my greatmother was born, and you helped us. You built this city beneath the mountains to keep us hidden. You taught us how to live off the land. You reminded us of what we had been and what we could still be. You don't need to remind me of my duty to the Aiel, I have heard this story before. I have grown up with it in my blood."

"It is not a story but a fact," Coline intoned. "As is this: _you _must be the one to go. _You _must be the one to travel over the Dragonwall. And _you_ must be the one to find the ones who can help us."

"Alright, say if I _do _go. How will I know when I've found these mysterious wetlanders who will help us? And why would they help?"

Coline glared again and shifted on the cushions. "_Once shall the daughter of the Three-Fold Land be saved by them. Once shall they by her. A daughter of the White and son of the Black, tied in a Three-fold promise to hunt the ravens and unite the dregs of a Three-fold pact."_

Rorie and Sasha looked at each other in confusion. "Coline Sedai…?" asked Rorie, delicately.

"I have the Talent known as Foretelling. You must tell _no one_, do you understand?" Coline shouted when Rorie gasped and Sasha looked up at her sharply. "No one must know!"

"But what does it mean?" asked Sasha.

"It is a prophecy. It came from my own mouth nearly a month ago. The one who recorded it has already been sworn to secrecy. I can make sense of most of it. The "daughter of the Three-Fold Land" is most likely you. Don't ask why I know this! I cannot tell you!" Coline cried croakily, her ancient hand playing with the odd serpent ring on her finger in agitation. Sasha swallowed the question on her lips. "The colors refer to the Black and White Towers, I am almost convinced of it! There is nothing else it could mean, since it even specifies '_daughter of the White and son of the Black._' Hunting the ravens…it could be a reference to the Seanchan Empire, since one of their symbols is the raven. The "_Three-fold promise"_ and the "_Three-fold pact,_" though, I am less clear on."

"I see," said Sasha, slightly confused. "So then, it refers to our war with the Seanchan?"

"Yes," answered Coline, "It talks of three groups: the Aiel, the Aes Sedai, and the Asha'man. All three are sworn enemies of the Seanchan, and the only ones who will resist them. And then it talks about hunting ravens. There is not a doubt in my mind."

"If that is so," said Sasha, finally making her decision, "Then I must go. If there is a chance this can help us against the Seanchan parasites, then it will win me much _ji _to go, even if I die."

"Best if you avoid dying," said Corine dryly, but nodded in approval. Rorie just smiled proudly at her daughter.

They talked long into the night, planning her journey over the Dragonwall, a quest to find what could save the Aiel, at least Sasha hoped.

XXX

The day was cool and shady beneath the branches of the forest that Sasha stalked through. It was early in the morning, the sunlight too weak to rouse even hardworking farmers from bed. But even when the Lodwigs would awaken, they would not think it amiss that she was gone, or that she had taken provisions. She had gone hunting before and had camped overnight during three of those excursions. By the time anyone figured out anything was wrong, she'd be long gone.

Walking along on the hunting trail, Sasha felt more elated and more apprehensive with every step she took. Coline had said that she would meet the wetlanders who would help her on this journey. That one of her clues would be that they would save her life, and she there's. The only reason she had stayed in Dormer's Hill for so long was that she thought Master Lodwig had saved her the night he brought her unconscious body from the forest to the village. She had hung around the Lodwigs, trying to figure out if they had any ties to the Black and White Towers, but it was all to no avail. The Lodwigs were farmers, pure and simple. Well, she amended in her head, not exactly pure. They were a greedy bunch, not at all pleased that they were to adopt her. They had only really accepted her when they learned of her extraordinary hunting skills.

In addition to that, Sasha was quite sure they would never help her or the Aiel. They didn't exactly worship the Seanchan and their Empress, adopting the common view of everyday people: it mattered not who ruled you, as long as you were safe, fed and happy. But Sasha had no doubt they would have killed her if they knew she was an Aiel. Aiel were bloodthirsty animals who preyed on innocents. She had heard Mistress Lodwig trying to scare the little ones with the tales.

No, she was glad that she was leaving Dormer's Hill. It had been nearly three years since she had crossed over the Spine and she had spent almost two of them in this Light forsaken village. It felt good to be up and about again. On the road, she could easily delude herself into thinking she was accomplishing something, that she knew where she was headed.

But, at the same time, part of her mind worried over her departure. Was she making a mistake? Were the people she was to meet really there?

Sasha froze, her mind focusing as she whirled around. There was someone behind her.

XXX

Well, the child was fast, she gave her that. Stephania waited behind a screen of bushes and trees, keeping an eye on the hunting trail that wound its way northward, far enough from the village and the main roads that it was unlikely bordering on impossible that they would be set upon by anyone. She had Travelled from one of the many Travelling grounds she had had set up throughout the surrounding area, arriving what she thought would be hours before little Sasha would get here. But the girl had arrived barely twenty minutes after Stephania had hidden herself, ambling along the trail at a surprising pace, given the large packs on her back. With that much to carry, she wondered whether the girl was planning on staying many nights on the hunt.

But these were idle thoughts. She had a job to do. She had to take Sasha in hand and guide her to the Power, but she had to lead Sasha delicately, otherwise she might run. Hard as it was to admit, the younger girl was much more fit than Stephania. She was taller too, now that she could see her clearly, away from the haze of drink and common room smoke. But that did not stop her from thinking of Sasha as a girl. Stephania was nineteen years old, already a woman, and she had completed her apprenticeship to an Aes Sedai more quickly than any pupil she had heard of. Sasha was most likely anywhere from twelve to sixteen, naïve in the ways of the world. She must have guidance from an older woman.

When the tanned figure in the brown wool dress had jogged thirty feet ahead of her hiding place, Stephania decided it was time. Holding her breath and smoothing out her dress of blue wool, she stepped a soft-soled boot over the brush she had been crouching behind and eased herself onto the trail.

Before she could open her mouth, Sasha somehow sensed her presence and whirled around and began readying her bow to shoot, right hand reaching for an arrow. When she realized it was not an attack, she relaxed slightly, though still relatively tense. Her left hand still held her bow and her right a steel-tipped arrow. Stephania was still in shock, though. The girl handled her weapons less like a hunter and more like a soldier in the middle of enemy territory.

Idle thoughts again.

Snapping her mind away from Sasha's hands, she regarded the girl's suspicious gray-green eyes and hard, full mouth. She would have been a delicate beauty if not for that nose and that chin. But her two strong features combined with her firm eyes to create a more unyielding face. Stephania wondered if it would be possible to get the girl to listen to her. No matter. She had to be in control of herself.

"Good morning, Sasha," she said, her face and voice projecting calm. "I'm Stephania." She left out her assumed last name. It was said the Aes Sedai of old could not lie, and so she tried to avoid it whenever possible.

"Yes, I've seen you in the village a few times," answered Sasha. "I'm going out hunting, as you can see." She twitched the bow in her left hand. "I'm curious as to why you're here. Why are you following me?"

Very direct. Well, it saved her some time. "There are some things that I need to convey you, if you will come with me?"

Sasha looked even more suspicious. Stephania wondered if it would be possible to get the girl to come with her without resorting to force. "What do you need to tell me? I'm sure you can spit it out where we are. If you want privacy, there's no one else here."

"You are right, but it is a risk I would rather not take. The words I must communicate are a matter of life and death and who knows who could be listening?" replied Stephania, an element of mystery entering her voice. She hoped the girl would be overcome by sheer curiosity.

It seemed to work. Or perhaps Sasha thought she was not a threat. It was a mistake many would make, thought Stephania wryly. One of the first things she would have to teach Sasha was to always overestimate danger. Either way, Sasha put away her weapons and strode toward her, eyes still scanning the treeline on either side. Stephania turned and led her back to her hiding place and they ghosted through the trees and the brush, deeper into the forest.

Stephania led her for two miles into the heart of the woods, where they stopped in a very small, circular clearing. She doubted anyone had ever come here. It was too small for a large party to camp in, and she could overcome a small one if it came to that. It was just big enough to make a gateway. Taking a silent breath, Stephania turned to face Sasha, who stood with her back to a tree, more suspicious than ever. Now or never. Stephania began to speak to the younger girl.

"What do you know of the Aes Sedai?"

Sasha glanced at her sharply, searchingly, before giving a careful answer. "They were a group of powerful women who could channel. They lived in the White Tower before the Empress, may she never cease to breathe, claimed it as her seat of power this side of the Aryth Ocean. They were _marath'damane_, and were collared after the death of the Dragon Reborn, shortly after the Last Battle. That was six centuries ago. Today, women who can channel are taken by the Empire to be enslaved."

Enslaved. An interesting choice of words. It had a negative connotation. Still, caution was called for. Stephania nodded. "Yes, that is true. Enslaved. Not a particularly admirable fate, being collared on an _a'dam, _broken, and turned into faithful weapons, never to exercise free will again. Not a fate anyone would want. I would not want it." She looked up at Sasha, meeting her eyes briefly with her dark brown ones.

"Nor I," agreed Sasha slowly, "But what-"

"Then you agree," she cut in, "That if you could channel, you would not submit to being turned into a slave?"

Sasha looked shocked and incredulous, "What are you getting at? Do you think they found me almost dead in the forest because I'm a runaway? Do you think I can channel or something? Is that your theory?"

"It is not my theory. I _know _it to be true," whispered Stephania. There it was. The first secret. Now it was time to reveal her options. But the girl had no choice. She would know that soon. "You can channel. You have the gift born in you. You will be unable to stop yourself. You will either be spotted by the next _damane _or _sul'dam_ you come in contact with and be collared or you will embrace the source by accident and quite likely die."

"How do you know that?" demanded Sasha, looking more shocked and ready to take out her weapons than ever before. "Who are you?"

"I am an Aes Sedai," said Stephania , embracing the Source and watching Sasha. Young though she might be, that bow was dangerous. If the girl tried anything, she would be bound by Air and carried to Tremalking. But better not to start out on the wrong foot.

Strangely, the girl's reaction was not what she had expected. There was shock and incredulity, yes, but no fear, no revulsion.

"And what do you want from me?" asked Sasha, finally. "You say my fate will be either death or slavery. Why approach me if you think I'm doomed? I've had enough with your beating around the bush!"

Stephania raised an eyebrow at the girl's tone, but let it go. "I can help you. If you are guided in reaching for _saidar_, the female half of the One Power, you can avoid death. If you come with me, I can hide you away from the Empire for a time while you learn how to channel. The Empire enslaves women who have the ability to help mankind and turns them into mindless weapons to use against them. Is that the fate you want?"

"I would not wish it on one I was in blood-feud with," growled Sasha, "I hate the Empire, as you do. But that does not mean that I trust you."

"Fair enough," Stephania conceded, feeling the signs of victory. But what was a blood-feud? Where was this girl from? "You don't need to trust me. You just need to come with me."

With that, Stephania turned and quickly wove a gateway to the place she had planned to go. Aaron had offered to go with her, but she had refused. It might make Sasha feel more threatened if it was two against one. Besides, _saidar _was the business of women, just as _saidin_ was of men.

Through the gateway, they could see the lush greenery of a tropical island. Warm, humid air wafted through the hole in the Pattern, blowing their hair back from their faces. Stephania turned her head towards Sasha, feeling a small sense of satisfaction at her open-mouthed shock and wonder, weapons limp in her hands.

"Come," she said, and stepped through the hole. Sasha looked hesitant at first, but she gritted her teeth and followed Stephania.

All in all, a success. She had a strong, stubborn will, it seemed. She would never make a meek pupil, but that was well in its own way. Stephania did not want a meek mouse as an ally anyway. _Ally?_ She thought in slight amusement. _When this day started I was so sure I could control her._

No, Sasha would be tried and tested to the limits of her abilities, treated with hard discipline and readied to face an enemy that spanned most of the world. But Stephania knew enough now that she would not try to control her.

_At least, not too much_, she amended. After all, she was Aes Sedai.

XXX

Empress Ziodhara Haethine Devi Paendrag sat on the throne-like chair at the end of the long throne room at the top of the White Tower, resplendent and eye-injuring in contrasting purple and gold silk. Gold jewelry inlaid with countless gems dripped from her neck, her arms, her fingers and her ears. The vision of extravagance was completed by a feather-tufted headdress with still more gold and ermine trimming.

But Queen Solvinia of Andor and Cairhien, Defender of the Pact of the Griffin that bound numerous nations to her was most definitely _not_ impressed by the woman's apparel. The Seanchan Empress was beautiful, if in an austere, regal way. Her skin was a light brown, her black eyes like daggers of polished onyx. Her brows were heavy and dark where Solvinia's were arched and graceful. Both women were of an equal height, but the Seanchan woman was more buxom, her face belonging to a woman who was at least thirty-five. Solvinia herself was ten years younger.

Walking in a stately pace along the hall full of High Blood courtiers to her left and kneeling _da'covale _on the right, Solvinia could not help compare herself with the Empress. They were both women of great power, likely the two most powerful beings in the world. Since she was seventeen, Solvinia had ruled the nations under her command fairly, with justice and compassion in either hand, just as her mother before had taught her. Just as her great predecessor, Queen Elayne, who had first lain claim to Cairhien and forged the Pact of the Griffin and who had replenished their line with the blood of the Dragon Reborn, had done. Solvinia was loved by her people and respected by the rulers of other nations. And yet, she thought, finally nearing the great chair that was carved in ravens, why must she lower her eyes before this woman? Why must she lower herself to her knees and kiss the floor beneath this woman's feet? It was abominable. It was unbearable.

"May the light illuminate you, Empress," she said, masking her disgust with herself for lowering herself to this cretin. She waited for the older woman to make the offhand wave before she raised herself to her feet, smoothing out the deep red silk dress she was wearing, embroidered with lions and roses, symbols of the Andoran monarchy. She had just returned to Caemlyn when she had received the summons to the White Tower to attend the Empress herself. She had had one of her three _damane_ make her a gateway and had come with speed, hating the way she was made to hurry, like a dog running to its mistress. And Ziodhara was just that. Her mistress. Her blood boiled and spots of color darkened her smooth cheeks. For once, she was glad Zhiodara could not see her eyes, which were still directed at the carpet. If she had seen the hatred and the challenge in her bright blue eyes, she would have likely been executed.

"Queen Solvinia," declared Empress Zhiodhara, running a disapproving eye over her, as if she was about to pass judgment. "You have not yet shaved your head. I remember suggesting it the last time you came before me."

As a ruler on this side of the Aryth Ocean, she was considered at once a part of and above the High Blood. As such, she was allowed the…_privilege_ of speaking directly to the Empress, but she was still required to shave half her head. Solvinia resisted the urge to finger her red-gold hair.

Suddenly, she noticed one of the men kneeling against the wall, on the opposite side from the High Blood. He was not a _da'covale._ No, the last time she had seen Korval, he had been on her board of advisors, a noble from a minor house. And he had been privy to many of the late-night meetings she had had, closeted in the secret rooms of the royal palace. Solvinia felt the blood drain from her face. If he'd been questioned…

"I see you've noticed my newest acquisition," said Ziodhara, smiling slightly. Korval's hand twitched at his side, clearly agitated, but he did not look up. Solvinia felt as if her heart would pound out of her chest, her fear was so great. But with her fear came hate for the woman in front of her. What was she playing at, making one of her most loyal nobles _da'covale_?

Ziodhara seemed not to notice her reaction and continued on. "My Seekers for Truth discovered he was at the center of a plot against the Empire, against myself. As such, I have removed him from your court and made him my property."

Solvinia was reeling. At the center? No, Korval was only a part of it. At the center of that particular plot was Solvinia herself. And Ziodhara knew it.

"He has yet to be put to the question, but I hesitated. After all, it is known how he is your…particular friend. I wanted to spare your feelings."

_Stop it. Stop playing with people's lives like they were ants you could crush with your boot! You know it was me! Why don't you challenge me, you coward? You're just afraid my kingdoms will rise up on my behalf. So instead you use Korval as a scapegoat, as a warning to me. _Solvinia was disgusted. She raised her eyes to stare daggers into Ziodhara' onyx ones, which instantly went hard at the challenge.

"Kneel," commanded the Seanchan empress. Solvinia could do nothing but obey. "It seems there are many…uncontrolled elements in the lands I have allowed you to rule. That is why, when I leave for my progress through Seanchan, I am leaving the Daughter of the Nine Moons with you."

The High Blood, who had been quietly watching Solvinia's humiliation so far, began whispering interestedly at this pronouncement. A girl who had been standing at the edge of the crowd, nearest the throne, walked a step forward. Solvinia turned to her and saw what looked to be Ziodhara in miniature, though that look off absolute authority was not as pronounced as it was in her mother. Onyx eyes regarded her with a stare less harsh than the ones on the older woman. Solvinia had never met the heir, but she had been told that Princess Thea was thirteen.

So. That was the point of her summons. Solvinia understood fully now. Ziodhara had likely known of Solvinia's plots to unseat her months, possibly years, in advance. Now that she was returning to Seanchan to make sure her rule there was properly solid, she wanted to make sure Solvinia wouldn't do anything too drastic. And she had left Thea as her keeper.

Solvinia bowed in acquiescence, head still working, preparing. There were still a great many avenues left for her. She felt sorry for Korval, but she could do nothing for him now.

_Those who rule from on high, who feel themselves to be more than mere humans, cannot be allowed control. They will abuse power_. Solvinia knew this in her veins. Ziodhara thought herself a god. Well, a human had toppled the Dark One himself six hundred years ago. Light willing, a similar miracle could be performed again.

But she would need help.

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Wow, this was a long chapter. Sorry it took so long, the hurricane on the east coast meant I had no internet. I hope everyone is safe and well. Thanks to Aderran for being the first to review me. Its appreciated! (And Stephania would never let Aaron come with her! Lol). I'm moving to Boston to start college on Wednesday, so expect the next chapter on Saturday. Thanks for reading!

EDIT: I'm pushing the publication of the next chapter ahead one day, so please check back tommorrow. This has been my first day of college, so I was very, very busy.

EDIT: Oh my god, I'm so sorry :( College is really hectic. My life has not settled into a routine yet. It will take a few more days. But I promise the next chapter WILL come!

(Come on, hit that Review button down there!)


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